Passing a school bus 39:4-128.1

[elitegunslinger]

It has been two years since my failure to stay right ticket I received when I was 17, now I am dealing with this ticket I received in the mail.

I didn't just drive by a bus that had been stopped and was unloading kids, I drove by a bus that suddenly stopped in a 35mph zone. It was the yellow to red light decision, usually I just stop at the yellow but I panicked and went. The nose of my car was perpendicular to the stop sign when it was finally revealed. Leaving no time to stop on a dime. The bus driver honked her horn at me as I passed, I didn't have enough time to properly stop.

The ticket was issued in the mail, the image shows me almost completely past the bus, not a danger to anyone.


So here are my questions:

1. What should I do?

2. What are my options?

3. I was told by a friend to just plead guilty and try to make a deal, good idea or bad?

[Eagle]

You should plead not guilty. As a result of pleading not guilty the bus driver will have to go to court and testify on the stand about the case. Very often it is an inconvenience for the driver to show up in court and wait a few hours for the case to begin. If the bus driver does not show up for court then you can ask the judge to dismiss the case. You have a constitutional right to confront all witnesses against you.

[elitegunslinger]

That sounds like a plan, do I still pay court fees?

Also what if he does come? Should I have a lawyer?

edit:
Also I believe that the bus had a video camera and not just a camera, however I am not sure.

[Eagle]

Your strategy here is that you are counting on the bus driver not showing up for court. Why would he want to? He would have to waste his entire night at court.

Your chances would be better with a lawyer but you will have to spend $$$$. A lawyer would be able to find out what pictures/video the bus company has. And he may also prevent it from coming into evidence at court if there is something wrong with it.

[elitegunslinger]

I would rather get a lawyer and spend 400-500 on one rather than 900 on a ticket +2 points if they decide to drop it to careless driving.

The only reason I know is because one of my friends had the same thing happen.

Any suggestions for lawyers? Or should I arbitrarily pick one of the many that came in the mail? (lol)

[elitegunslinger]

bump

I got some information from another board:
Sounds reasonable. I have seen those stop signs come out with little or no regard to traffic conditions after all they are under time restraints… ( I think it’s a bus driver power trip ) Do you recall seeing the yellow caution or red flashing lights before the stop sign was deployed? You could successfully argue that you had no warning. However, the courts tend to error on the side of caution, and with a bus load of kids I can think of no better reason to be cautious. I wouldn’t count on the bus driver not showing up. School bus drivers have about seen it all when it comes to the driving public. You may have not made a friend that day, and keep in mind if you lose you may have court costs to pay as well as any fines.…..Der Doktor ist heraus

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It looks like the driver forgot that he was stopping there until a kid yelled that his stop was being missed. Then the driver didn't give the required warning period.

It happened to me one time that the bus was entirely hidden by a semitrailer truck as I approached a green traffic light. It was a 4-lane undivided street with no left turn lanes, so I thought nothing of the truck stopping there in the left lane with a green light. I thought he was waiting to turn left. But he had stopped for a school bus going the other way that had stopped to let children off. I stopped as soon as I saw the bus, but I had already passed the rear end of the bus when I came to a stop (the speed limit is 40).

This is an extremely dangerous situation. School buses should not be discharging children on 4-lane highways, due to this hazard.

and

I did see the yellows but she was driving for 100 yards or so on, she basically pulled a "red light, green light, go!" game with her lights. I slowed down because I thought she was just going to go lights, slow down, stop; instead it was more along the lines of lights, keep going, going slower, STOP flip sign out.

I had slowed down assuming she was going to just stop, because the bus was departing I didn't have a point of reference of where she was stopping so I proceeded.

[elitegunslinger]

I really need a game plan to talk to the prosecutor.

0. Dress in suit and bring my dad's girlfriend because my mother is dead
1. Go in early and talk to him
2. Explain situation
3. Cry a little... ( would it work? :D )

Then what happens next?

[elitegunslinger]

another post from the other forum

Your best bet is dress VERY conservatively and bring someone..Explain as you did here, forget 1, you won't have time, forget 3, it won't work.

"what happens next?"

Hope the Judge is in a good mood …..Der Doktor ist heraus!

So any suggestions on what I should do at the court?

[Eagle]

Thanks for all the info you posted. The only thing you have to do when you talk to the prosecutor is be polite. You may want to get there early too.

Also, if you plead not guilty and let the prosector know that you intend to vigorously fight the charge then he may be more inclined to make a deal with you.

If you plead not guilty you have a right to confront and cross examine the witness against you (the bus driver). This can be very uncomfortable for the bus driver and if you know the facts of your case and you ask the right questions you can could possibly make the bus driver look like an idiot.

You can write a letter to the prosecutor and request that you view the video tape before your court date. This is called discovery. You may want to do this to see how strong a case there is against you. It also puts the prosecutor on notice that you are serious about fighting the charge.

I still think that there is a chance the bus driver may not show up. Remember, if you plead not guilty the court usually takes you case after last and that could take hours. Do you really think this school bus driver wants to waste an entire night sitting in some municipal court?

[elitegunslinger]

Excellent and as per the other forum:

Go in and speak with the PA. You can cut a deal with him/her, then it will be explained to the judge.

Do not wear a hat, or a advertising shirt. (Alcohol or rock band shirts will give you a worse deal.)

Do not have an attitude.
Show up about an hour early, because that is when the PA starts the bargaining session.

FYI. ALWAYS assume that a buss driver is insane. Driving with 30 children in your vehicle will do that to you. They will never drive rationally or do what you expect.
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Also how do you go about contacting them for a video tape, sorry if that seems like a silly question.

[Eagle]

Call the court and ask for the prosecutor's name and address. Explain that you need that info to make a discovery request. Then write a letter to the prosecutor and explain that your are requesting discovery and would like to view the video tape, if there is one.

[elitegunslinger]

I actually talked to a police officer that lives nearby and works in the area, he said to plead not guilty, explain your a good driver, and ask for the lesser charge such as careless driving which is 2 points, 85$, and no surcharges (that I know of), I have no other points on my license so I should be alright. Comments?